Page 5 of Blood Stone

He stood up and finally she got a measure of how tall he was. She stood five eight in bare feet and she wore four inch heels, which put her at six feet. Garrett still looked down into her eyes.

“So it wasFace Offthat got me the two minutes, then,” he said. His voice was soft and just for a minute she thought, or maybe even imagined a touch of Scottish brogue. “You were at the SAG gala last night, so you must have watchedFace Offlater, when you got home. And we were on-line at three a.m., so you had a sleepless night. Were you alone, Kate? Or did you stand up your date while you and I danced electronically?”

If it had been anyone else speaking this way, or standing this close to her, she would have yelled for security. All sorts of personal space proximity alarms were going off in her head. But they were muted and dulled.

This was Calum Garrett. She could practicallyfeelhis power roiling off him like radiant heat.

“You have some downsides that only show up in person.” She gasped, wishing she could tear her gaze away from his eyes.

“I can get you Patrick Sauvage.” His voice was low, flat. Sincere.

Kate gasped. “You can’t. No one can. He wants thirty million, that’s practically my whole budget, and he’s got problems that would suck up the rest just to deal with—”

“I can get him for five and I’ll cover the rest of his babysitting bill,” Garrett replied.

Was he actually standing closer to her? Moving closer? Her heart wouldn’t stop hammering. It was actually starting to hurt. Five million for a major Hollywood A-List player like Sauvage was chicken feed. It was a bargain discount price. “You’llpay his maintenance?” Kate tacked on, while her mind whirled.

“It’s like you said last night.” Garrett’s voice was soft, designed not to carry to the next table. “He’s only perfect. And I have leverage you don’t.”

“And what do you want for that leverage?” she asked suspiciously.

“Nothing.”

She laughed.

“A percentage, of course.”

“Oh, of course,” she replied, still smiling.

“Given how much I would be putting into the production, that would make me a contributing producer. So I’d get credit. And I should oversee the production, as my profits would be at risk.”

Kate stepped back from him, her mirth congealing. “Gotcha,” she told him.

Garrett narrowed his eyes. “What?”

“Your agenda. I’ve got it now.” She resettled her satchel and glanced at her watch. Five minutes late. “You’re a movie freak.”

Garrett shook his head. “I’m a Lindenstream freak. Big difference.”

She took another step backward. “It just makes you a little bit more selective than the other movieland fans out there. You’re star struck, Garrett, and you have money enough to deal yourself into the game so you can play in all that glamour.” She could feel her lip trying to curl up in disgust. “You’re all the same, with or without money, though.”

Garrett thrust his hand into his pocket. “You’re wrong.”

“I’ve had nearly a decade of learning how to recognize one of you coming at me. I don’t think so. Find yourself another patsy, Garrett. I’m not playing your game for you. I don’t care how many millions you have, or what you can do for my movie. It would make me sick to use your leverage. The price is too high for my tastes.” She turned away from him, strode across the foyer and into the restaurant, deeply relieved to be away from Garrett, his radiate heat and power and flawed agenda.

Everyone has an agenda. Even your lunch date.

She gripped the strap of her satchel harder, making the edges curl inward and bite into her palm. She was going into the game with Adrian with her eyes open. That was the difference. Garrett had tried to blind-side her. Not the same animal at all.

She saw Adrian sitting at one of the ghastly yellow semi-circular buffets, his arms spread along the back of the rounded cushions, and waved as she made her way toward him.

At leasthewas on time.